Power conditioning devices, or simply power conditioners, are used to improve the quality of electricity provided to equipment connected thereto, such as to maintain a consistent alternating current (AC) supply voltage in response to variations in electrical supply conditions. Power conditioners may include filter circuits to remove electrical noise from the AC supply voltage and suppressor circuits to limit transients/surges in the AC supply voltage, thereby preventing potentially disruptive/damaging conditions from reaching connected equipment. Such power conditioners may have multiple outlets to which the equipment can be connected and through which the conditioned power may be provided. In certain systems, the connected load equipment, regardless of the spatial distribution of such equipment, is treated as a single load, e.g., a voltage surge in the supply power is prevented from entering all equipment connected to the power conditioner. While such measures are practical, and even critical in certain applications, adaptability and fine control afforded by conventional power conditioning systems is limited.
Spatial distribution of load equipment presents other challenges to efficient power conditioning and control, such as when pieces of distributed equipment are supplied electricity from different sources. While spatial distribution may present little impediment in certain applications, other applications require multiple power conditioners to protect each of multiple loads, and carrying out a consistent power conditioning and control scheme over all such connected load equipment may become problematic. Moreover, alerts as to critical conditions, e.g., persistent supply over-voltage, issued from multiple, spatially-separated power conditioning points may delay efforts by personnel to correct such conditions. There is thus an apparent need for monitoring and control over distributed power conditioning points, e.g., at individual power outlets, and for means by which monitoring and control functions may be accessed and modified from a central location.